Final answer:
The unearned revenue as of December 31 for Venible newspapers is $450,000, which represents the remaining half of the total annual subscription revenue, as only 6 months of the subscription period have lapsed by that date.
Step-by-step explanation:
To calculate the unearned revenue that Venible newspapers will have as of December 31, we need to consider the subscription period covered by the payments received on June 1. Since each subscription is for an annual period, half of the subscription period would have elapsed by December 31 (6 months out of 12 months).
With 6,000 annual subscriptions sold at $150 each, the total revenue from subscriptions is:
6,000 subscriptions × $150/subscription = $900,000 total revenue.
For 6 months of the year, half of that revenue will have been earned, and the other half will remain as unearned revenue:
$900,000 total revenue × 1/2 = $450,000 unearned revenue as of December 31.
Therefore, the correct answer is c. $450,000.